KENOSHA, Wis. --- Sophomore Mia Dosen, from the Parkside women's soccer team, has received a call up to the senior level Croatia National Team. She will leave this week for Europe to open group play.  

Dosen, a dual citizen of the United States and Croatia had this to say about the recent call up, "I am very excited; I have been working on this since high school. I am so excited to not just represent my country but also Parkside. I want to thank my coaching staff at Parkside and the HNS."   

It's a childhood dream come true for Dosen. Her father, Nick, was Croatian born and had played soccer professionally. He had dreamed of Mia competing for Croatia on the international stage. "Since I was little, this was my parents and I's dream. Now that's it actually happening it's so surreal." Nick passed away in 2016. Dosen credits her mom, Ann, for supporting her through all the adversity she has faced in her life. She also credited her youth coaches, Ante Cop, Semir Mesanovi, and Sinisa Alebic. "They always supported me and ensured I got to follow in my dad's footsteps." Dosen's dreams are set to come true in the two upcoming matches for Croatia. "I can't wait to honor my dad by wearing the Croatian crest." 

The Croatia Women's National Team will be playing in the UEFA Women's Nations League. The league was comprised by UEFA to create an equal opportunity for the European teams to qualify for major tournaments. Croatia is in Group B and will look to win the group to advance to Group A to have an opportunity to qualify for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.  

Dosen has already played in all three matches for Parkside this season and most recently notched an assist in the match against Concordia-St.Paul. "We are thrilled for Mia to have this opportunity to compete at the international level. It's going to be a fantastic experience for her and I am very proud of her hard work that has earned her the chance to represent Croatia," head coach Brittany Nikolic said. 

Croatia will play against Romania on Friday, Sept 22. Kickoff will be at 1:15 p.m. CDT. They will then finish the first half of group play against Slovakia on Tuesday, Sept 26. Kickoff will be at 11:00 a.m. CDT. Ranger fans can watch on UEFA.tv where all of the UEFA Women's Nations League matches will be broadcasted.